DALLAS — The Orlando Magic led the Dallas Mavericks 48-43 at halftime Tuesday night. For most teams, that would be a good position, but Magic coach Frank Vogel worried. Too many times this season, his team has opened the third quarter poorly.

So after the Magic gathered inside American Airlines Center’s visitors’ locker room, Vogel reminded his players about their loss Saturday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavaliers scored 40 third-quarter points and took control of the game. Against the Mavericks, Vogel told his players, everyone had to do better.

The pep talk failed. The Mavericks, a team with one of the NBA’s worst records, scored 39 third-quarter points, made 69 percent of their second-half shots and cruised to a 114-99 victory.

“We just didn’t play tough enough or well enough,” Vogel said after it ended.

With the loss, the Magic reached the exact midpoint of their 2017-18 season — 41 games in, with 41 more to go — and there’s no question about where the team stands. As Tuesday night showed yet again, Vogel and his coaches harp relentlessly on some of basketball’s most basic tenants, and their players simply cannot or do not produce.

At 12-29, the Magic own the NBA’s second-worst record.

And they’re plummeting down in the standings.

They’ve lost 25 of their last 29 games, with no end in sight. Games loom against some of the league’s heavyweights: the Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.

“We’ve got to do better,” reserve point guard D.J. Augustin said. “We can’t start the game slow. We can’t start the second half slow. That’s everybody, not a particular group. It’s the whole team, and we’ve just got to do a better job and close out games.”

Tuesday night started poorly.

About 35 minutes before the national anthem, team officials announced that their best young player, forward Aaron Gordon, would not start the game because he had violated team rules. A source said Gordon arrived late to the team plane at Orlando International Airport following practice Monday.

“Within our rulebook, we have fines in place,” Vogel said after Tuesday’s defeat. “If we need to take action greater than a fine, we take action greater than a fine.”

Vogel subbed Gordon in with 5:31 remaining in the first quarter and opened the third quarter with Gordon on the court. Gordon played 33 minutes total, slightly under his season average.

“Obviously, it hurts,” Gordon said. “I want to be on the floor as much as I can — and starting. I understand that time management is crucial and being punctual is part of character. Having a high character leads into winning. It’s the little things that matter, so I understand why they did it.”

Gordon finished with 19 points on 6-of-16 shooting. He wasn’t sharp, but he provided the best hustle play of the night.

With Orlando trailing 78-69 late in the third quarter, Wes Iwundu missed a turnaround jumper, and Gordon fought for the rebound against several Mavericks players. Gordon tipped the ball five times before he finally gathered it with two hands. Gordon then dunked over Salah Mejri as Mejri fouled him. Gordon sank the ensuing free throw to cut the deficit to 78-72.

Gordon’s effort prompted Marreese Speights to rush over and chest-bump him, but the Magic never built on that effort.

The Mavericks (14-28) just outplayed them.

Dirk Nowitzki tied his season high by scoring 20 points, and guard Yogi Ferrell compiled 15 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

“They executed well, and we played not tough enough in a lot of ways,” Vogel said.

This is who the Magic are.

Same old, tired story.

jrobbins@orlandosentinel.com. Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/magicblog and follow him on Twitter at @JoshuaBRobbins.

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